Maharaj starring debutant Junaid Khan, Jaideep Ahlawat, Sharvari Wagh and Shalini Pandey was released on June 21 exclusively on Netflix. The film has been receiving rave reviews from the audience and the OTT film became a huge hit as it took second spot on Netflix in 22 countries. Moreover, Junaid finally became a starkid that was welcomed with open arms in the Indian entertainment industry. Recently, the director of Maharaj, Siddharth P Malhotra along with the cast came together for a press conference after the success of the film. This is when several revelations were made, while the director revealed that the role of Maharaj was written for the late critically acclaimed actor Irrfan Khan.
Irrfan Khan was the original choice for Maharaj
For the unversed, Maharaj was written before Covid-19 hit the world. Moreover, the film was shot in 50 days after the first lockdown in Mumbai and Gujarat. This was the time when Irrfan Khan was with us and the entertainment world was being blessed with his mere existence. The makers of Maharaj wrote the role of JJ keeping him in mind. However, after Irrfan's unfortunate death due to cancer, director Siddharth P Malhotra moved to Jaideep Ahlawat to play the role. In the press conference, the filmmaker not only made the revelation but also said that he thinks the only actor who can live up to Irrfan's calibre is Jaideep.
"When it came to the role of Maharaj, the only person that we can think of and god bless his soul, is Irrfan Khan. There's no one else who could not this role better than him. And I keep telling Jaideep sir that again and again and it's too much pressure for him, but I think the only actor in the entire universe, who can match that level of performance is Jaideep Ahlawat. He can do anything, he is one of the best actors we have in this country undoubtedly. However, it was tough to convince him for this role because initially he had said no to the role. But I am grateful that he did the role and is getting the recognition, rightly so," the Maharaj director.
About the film
For the unversed, Junaid Khan-starrer Maharaj was scheduled to premiere on June 14 on Netflix. The streaming giant halted its release after the Gujarat High Court stayed its release following a petition by members of a Hindu sect who claimed the film would hurt their religious sentiments on June 13. The makers of Maharaj had to deal with a legal battle in the Gujarat High Court to release their film. And minutes after getting a clean chit from HC, Netflix released Junaid Khan's debut film on their OTT platform. For those who don't know, Maharaj is inspired by a real-life case and adapted from Saurabh Shah's book, 'Maharaj'. The story revolves around a social reformer who brought about significant positive societal changes.
